There are 5 owner-reported body & structure complaints for the 2002 Oldsmobile Alero in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 OLDSMOBILE ALERO. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENTIRE DASHBOARD WAS COMING APART. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS BUT THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE FAILURE WAS A COSMETIC ISSUE AND OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED WHO STATED THAT THE VEHICLE SHOULD BE TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR REPAIRS AND OFFERED NO FURTHER ASSISTANCE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 104,000. ..UPDATED 09-21-12*BF
THE DASH HAD BEGUN PULLING AWAY AND COMING UNGLUED ABOUT 2 YEARS AGO. I FOUND THAT THIS IS A PROBLEM WITH THIS MODEL YEAR. WHEN I SPOKE WITH THE DEALER THEY SAID IT WAS NOT PART OF A RECALL. BUT THEY WOULD SPLIT THE COST WITH ME -MY END WOULD BE $650. I COULD NOT AFFORD IT AND IT HAS CONTINUED TO RUMPLE AND BUBBLE UP. I AM THE ONLY OWNER. IT IS A DEFECT THAT NO ONE WANTS TO ADDRESS. ESPECIALLY, SINCE MY WARRANTY WILL BE UP WITH IN A MONTH OR TWO. I JUST GOT TIRED OF FIGHTING WITH THE DEALER TO DO SOMETHING. I HAVE GIVEN UP AND WILL NOT BE PURCHASING A GM CAR AGAIN. THANKS FOR NOTHING -MY LOYALTY IS GOING SOMEWHERE ELSE. *JB
IN SEPTEMBER 2004 I PURCHASED A USED 2002 OLDSMOBILE ALERO. BY NOVEMBER MY ALERO'S INTERIOR DOOR PANELS STARTED TO BUBBLE AND BUCKLE ON 3 DOORS. MY VEHICLE IS STILL UNDER THE BUMPER TO BUMPER GM FACTORY WARRANTY. I BROUGHT MY CAR TO BROWN (DEALERSHIP) IN SACO, MAINE AND WAS TOLD TO CALL GM TO SEE IF I COULD GET THE WORK APPROVED. THEY DENIED THE WORK AND SAID THEY DIDN'T COVER "COSMETIC PROBLEMS". I THEN FILED A COMPLAINT WITH THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU. SOMEONE FROM GM WHO HANDLES THE BBB CASES CALLED AND SAID ONCE AGAIN THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO FOR ME. THIS TIME THE SAID THE PROBLEM WAS CAUSED BY THE PREVIOUS OWNER. BEFORE MY CASE WENT TO ARBITRATION GM REQUESTED THE BBB TO SEND OUT A TECHNICAL EXPERT TO LOOK AT THE CAR. HIS CONCLUSION WAS INADEQUATE ADHESIVE. NOT LONG AFTER THE REPORT CAME OUT AND BEFORE ARBITRATION, GM CALLED AND INFORMED ME THAT THEY WILL FIX MY ALERO. THEY TOLD ME I MUST GO TO BROWN IN SACO, MAINE WHERE KEVIN BRADY (SERVICE MANAGER) SAID HE STILL REFUSES TO FIX THE CAR. I CALLED GM BACK AND THEY SAID TO FIND A DEALERSHIP THAT WILL DO THE WORK. THIS PROBLEM SEEMS TO PLAGUE THOUSANDS OF ALERO OWNERS FROM WHAT I HAVE SEEN ON THE INTERNET. THIS IS A FACTORY DEFECT THAT GM MUST OWN UP TO!!!*JB
I TOOK A LONG ROAD TRIP VACATION THIS PAST SUMMER. THE 2002 ALERO TURNED OVER 36,000 MILES BEFORE I GOT HOME. I DIDN' T DRIVE THE CAR FOR A FEW DAYS UPON MY RETURN. *AK WHEN I OPENED THE DOOR A FEW DAYS LATER, THE GLUE HAD COME UNGLUED FROM THE LEATHER ON THE DASH AND THREE OF THE DOOR PADS UNDER THE WINDOWS AND THE LEATHER WAS BUCKLED VERY BADLY. YOU CAN VIEW PICUTERS OF THE DASH AND DOOR PADS IF YOU WILL GO TO HTTP://WWW.DILLOWS.COM/ALERO.HTM ON THE INTERNET BECAUSE AS THEY SAY A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS. I WENT TO THE DEALER WHO REFUSED TO FIX IT. I CONTACTED OLDSMOBILE WHO REFUSED TO FIX IT AFTER KEEPING ME WAITING THREE MONTHS TO HEAR THEIR REFUSAL. I CONTACTED GM VIA EMAIL WHO EMAILED BE BACK AND TOLD ME TO NEVER CONTACT THEM AGAIN CONCERNING MY CLAIM # 1-143309922 FOR THE DASH AND DOOR PADS COMING UNGLUED AND BUCKLED BECAUSE OF THEIR FACTORY DEFECTS IN THEIR MANUFACTURING PROCESS. IT IS NOT RIGHT AND SHOULD BE AGAINST THE LAW FOR GM TO BE ALLOWED TO HAVE SOLD US THE ALERO FULL OF FACTORY DEFECTS AND FOR THEM JUST TO SHUT DOWN THE OLDSMOBILE LINE AND BE ABLE TO WALK AWAY FROM THE CUSTOMERS WHO PIRCHASED THE ALERO WHICH IS A SERIES OF FACTORY DEFECTS INSIDE AND OUT WITHOUT BEING HELT RESPONSIBLE.
LEAK NOTED DURING RAIN, NOT NOTED DURING ANY CAR WASHES. MR
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Sep 8, 2026